MORE than 13,000 people have signed up for the Virtual Kiltwalk weekend after planned mass participation events were postponed due to coronavirus restrictions.

Individuals and teams from all over the country have signed up for the event to raise funds for their chosen charity and we are on board.

Following the announcement of our fantastic link up with the Virtual Kiltwalk which will allow you to raise money for The Herald memorial garden campaign, we are putting in our own team.

Staff from The Herald will be playing their part over the weekend of Friday September 11 to Sunday September 13 to help raise funds for our campaign.

Read more: Line of Duty star Martin Compston sends his support to Kiltwalk participants

While our supporters have said they will sign up to raise funds for the campaign to create a garden in memory of Scotland’s coronavirus victims, we couldn’t let them do it alone. That is why we will be taking part as well.

Any money you raise for this worthy cause will be topped up by 50% by entrepreneur and Kiltwalk supporter Sir Tom Hunter through The Hunter Foundation.

You can hop, skip, jump, walk or run - you choose. Our staff members will be running, walking or pedalling their way to helping to reach our fundraising target of £50,000 for a memorial garden for Scotland’s coronavirus victims.

Donald Martin, Editor of The Herald and Herald on Sunday, said: “This is a great event which we are delighted to be associated with. We know many people will be raising funds for the campaign and other charities and we wanted to play our part as well. Our team will be doing what they can from walking, jogging or cycling to help raise funds for the memorial garden campaign.”

The aim of The Herald’s campaign is to create a memorial and peaceful garden as a place where families can go to remember their loved ones lost to the pandemic.

It is hoped the site will be a place for people to be alone with their thoughts or reflect on the lives of people who have died and be a comfort to people who may want to visit.

Donations from readers and fundraising initiatives are helping us on our way to our target.

Last month former printing tycoon John Watson OBE generously offered £10,000 to our Garden of Remembrance campaign, which more than doubled the total raised so far towards our £50,000 target.

Read more: Grieving partner who lost her fiance to Covid-19 supports Kiltwalk in aid of memorial garden

Just days after we revealed we had passed the £10,000 mark, Mr Watson helped us reach our second milestone and we have now raised more than £22,000. We have set up a dedicated GoFundMe page to help us reach our goal and help us build a memorial as a tribute to every Scot who has died from Covid-19.

The campaign has been offered Pollok Country Park as the location for the memorial by Glasgow City Council leaders which is one place you could take a stroll in aid of the Kiltwalk.

Among those taking part will be Connie McCready whose fiancé Jim Russell died from the virus in May. They had been due to get married in June.

Mr Russell, from Glasgow, felt unwell in March and died in hospital five weeks later.

His devastated fiancée Ms McCready has been a strong supporter of our campaign and is urging people to take part in the Virtual Kiltwalk in aid of the memorial garden.

She said: “I really hope people sign up for the Kiltwalk wherever they are or whatever they can do to help as I think the memorial garden will be somewhere which will provide a lot of comfort.”

All you need to do is register on the Kiltwalk website and select your chosen cause as The Herald memorial garden campaign in the drop down options.

To sign up to the Kiltwalk in aid of The Herald memorial garden visit www.thekiltwalk.co.uk.

To donate go to: gofundme.com/herald-garden-of-remembrance. Donations can be posted to The Herald Garden of Remembrance Campaign, Herald & Times, 125 Fullarton Drive, Glasgow G32 8FG. With cheques made payable to The Herald. If you would like to help, send an email to: memorialgarden@theherald.co.uk